annette bening

This has been an incredibly strong Oscar Season at THE NEON. We brought you THE FLORIDA PROJECT, FACES PLACES, LADY BIRD and THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI before the holidays. Then we brought THE SHAPE OF WATER, DARKEST HOUR, CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, PHANTOM THREAD, I, TONYA and all the OSCAR NOMINATED SHORTS. It’s been one nominee to next…and Sunday will give us the winners!

We’re squeezing in two films that we initially didn’t think we’d have room to program. On Friday, we’ll open THE INSULT (a brilliant courtroom drama that’s nominated for “Best Foreign Film” at the Academy Awards) and THE YOUNG KARL MARX (for which A.O. Scott of The New York Times just wrote a glowing review). Audiences loved FILM STARS DON’T DIE IN LIVERPOOL, so we’ll hold it for limited screenings along with I, TONYA for one more week. If you still need to see the ANIMATED or LIVE ACTION OSCAR NOMINATED SHORTS, Thursday will be your last chance to catch them at THE NEON! And don’t forget about our FREEOSCAR PARTY this Sunday (more details below).

Synopsis for THE INSULT: Nominated for “Best Foreign Film” at this year’s Academy Awards! “In today’s Beirut, an insult blown out of proportion finds Tony (Adel Karam), a Lebanese Christian, and Yasser (Kamel El Basha), a Palestinian refugee in court.” A.O. Scott of THE NEW YORK TIMES wrote, “There is something undeniably exhilarating about the film’s honest assessment of the never-ending conflict between decency and cruelty that rages in every nation, neighborhood and heart.” Click THIS LINK to visit the film’s official site.

Synopsis for THE YOUNG KARL MARX: “In the mid-1800s, after decades ofthe scientific and economic marchof the Industrial Revolution has created an age of both new prosperity and new problems, a 26-year-old writer, researcher andradical namedKarl Marx embarks,with his wife Jenny,on the road to exile. In Paris in 1844 they meet young Friedrich Engels, the well-to-do son of a factory owner whose studies and research has exposed the poor wages and worse conditions of the new English working class who operate looms, printing presses and other engines of industry that enrich their owners while punishing laborers. The smooth and sophisticated – but equally revolutionary and radical – Engels brings his research, help and resources to provide Marx with the missing piece to the puzzle that composes his new vision of the world.” A.O. Scott of The New York Times wrote that the film is, “Both intellectually serious and engagingly free-spirited.”

It’s Almost OSCAR Time! This Sunday, you’re invited to THE NEON’s Annual Oscar Viewing Party! The pre-show begins at 7pm, and we will begin seating as close to 7pm as possible. (The actual Oscar ceremony traditionally begins at 8:30.) Completed ballots (which are now available in our lobby) must be turned in before the first Oscar is given. YOU MUST BE PRESENT TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR PRIZES. You can reserve a spot and your place in line by dropping off your ballot when we open our doors on Sunday, March 4. One Ballot/Reservation Per Person! We’ll have fantastic prizes all night long, and our grand prize will once again be donated by our friends at Square One Salon & Spa with additional prizes from Always Ballroom and James Apesos M.D.

SAVE THE DATE! On March 22, Cliff Fawcett is bringing back the wildly successful PADDLING FILM FESTIVAL (formerly known as THE REEL PADDLING FILM FESTIVAL). This festival of short films that all take place on waterways around the world has garnered quite a following. More details soon!

Thank you for your continued support!
We hope to see you this weekend,
Jonathan

COMING SOON:
(All Dates Are Tentative. Dates Often Move And Sometimes Disappear)
March 9 – THE PARTY
March 16 – A FANTASTIC WOMAN
April 6 – ISLE OF DOGS
April 6 – LOVELESS
April 20 – FOXTROT
April 27 – YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE
May 18 – RBG
TBD – THE DEATH OF STALIN
TBD – LEISURE SEEKER

The booking fairy has granted us a wish! THE NEON currently has Dayton’s exclusive booking of THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT…and that’s great for you, because THE NEON has Dayton’s best first-run ticket prices (not to mention a great selection of microbrews and imported beers). We hope you’ll make plans to come out and support this film that is winning audiences & critics over across the country.

Synopsis for THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT: “The Kids Are All Right is the heartfelt new comedy from acclaimed director Lisa Cholodenko, starring Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, and Mark Ruffalo. Two teenaged children (Alice in Wonderland’s Mia Wasikowska and Journey to the Center of the Earth’s Josh Hutcherson) get the notion to seek out their biological father and introduce him into the family life that their two mothers (Bening and Moore) have built for them. Once the donor (Ruffalo) is found, the household will never be the same, as family ties are defined, re-defined, and re-re-defined. The New York Times raves that it’s ‘a generous, nearly note-perfect portrait of a modern family,’ and Entertainment Weekly calls the movie ‘funny, smart and sexy!’” (taken from movieweb.com) Click on the image below to be directed to the official site.

We had to move WINTER’S BONE back a week, so we’re going to hold CYRUS for another week and hold onto MICMACS for one screening a day for one more week. Both of these films will leave next Thursday to make room for WINTER’S BONE on August 6th. Hurry down if you still need to see either of these films.

The Downtown Dayton LGBT Film Festival is swinging into action for its 5th year! Mark your calendars for September 24-26. The opening night film will be I KILLED MY MOTHER(an absolutely incredible film that has won awards and garnered high praise from numerous film festivals…from Cannes to Toronto to Frameline) – and you absolutely can’t miss it on the big screen. In next week’s update, I’ll announce the entire line-up. If you know someone who would like to sponsor the festival (either through a business or personally), please get in touch with me right away.

And Now – FREE TICKET Information. We want you to review our films! Come to THE NEON and see our current films…then post your review on DaytonMostMetro.com under THE NEON’s weekly update. At the end of August, we’ll collect all the names of people who have reviewed films – and we’ll draw 2 winners for a free pass (good for 2 admissions). Each film review counts as an entry (though you can only review a film one time). Please join in and help create some energy for THE NEON. (If this goes over well, we’ll do it next month, too.)